If you’re just starting to think about applying for an MBA, you may be overwhelmed with just how complex the process is. There are so many things that go into a successful application, which is why we created this series to walk you through all of the crucial steps of your MBA application process.
Today, we’re zooming in on what happens after you’ve been admitted to one or more MBA programs. There are so many factors that many applicants never consider, so here we explore everything you need to know after your MBA application journey “ends”!
If you missed our previous posts in this series, no worries! You can catch up by clicking the links below:
MBA Application Fundamentals – Part 1: Creating your Test Strategy
MBA Application Fundamentals – Part 2: Choosing your Schools
MBA Application Fundamentals – Part 3: Defining your Profile
MBA Application Fundamentals – Part 4: Securing Letters of Recommendation
MBA Application Fundamentals – Part 5: Crafting your Essays
MBA Application Fundamentals – Part 6: Filling out Online Forms
MBA Application Fundamentals – Part 7: Preparing for Video Essays
MBA Application Fundamentals – Part 8: Ensuring you Shine in Interviews
Deposits
After diligent preparation, you’ve done it! You’ve finally been offered a spot in one or more elite business schools. Now, it’s time to formalize the agreement.
Though often overlooked, the MBA deposit is an important strategic consideration you should factor into your application timeline.
To secure your spot in the next incoming class, most US business schools ask you to pay a non-refundable deposit ranging from $1,000 to $3,000. For Round 1 applicants, this amount is often due sometime in February, and for Round 2 applicants, this amount is usually due sometime in April. (Individual amounts and deadlines vary per school, so make sure to check the sites of your target schools for specific information).
The major exception to this rule is Columbia Business School. Columbia employs a rolling admissions approach, meaning you usually get your admissions decision 6 weeks after applying. Applicants then have an average of 2 weeks to pay a $6,000 non-refundable deposit.
In similar fashion, other schools with early decision rounds, like IESE, often ask you to pay a larger-than-normal deposit to secure your spot before any other Round 1 results are released.
This means that, if not planned properly, you may be on the hook for thousands of dollars to secure a spot at one school before hearing back from all of the programs you applied to.
Though this can be great news if you get into your top choice programs, it can also cause many issues later on if you apply early to programs you’re not 100% committed to. For that reason, think very carefully before sending in your application to an early decision round.
Hopefully, you created an application strategy that took these all-important deadlines into account, but if you didn’t, we suggest you start thinking about what you’ll do if one school asks you to pay a sizable deposit before you hear back from every school on your list.
Finally, we don’t recommend saying no to a school and planning to reapply next year if necessary. Schools are not likely to take a risk on your profile twice.
It’s important to keep in mind that most loan programs do not allow you to finance the amount needed for a deposit for certain programs. To make sure this does not end your business school dream before it starts, we recommend creating a budget in advance to ensure you have the funds necessary to make all the required payments.
NOTE: If you are on the waitlist at one program and have an upcoming deposit deadline at another school, it is perfectly acceptable to ask if you can receive a waitlist update before the other deposit is due.
However, the schools are under no obligation to give you an answer by this date and there is a risk your answer will be “no” if you state you absolutely need an answer by a certain date and the school does not have any spots available. As such, make sure to craft your plan with care and determine if you’re willing to pay a deposit at one school while remaining on the waitlist at another.
MBA scholarship negotiations
Despite the fact that an MBA at a top business school like Stanford Graduate School of Business costs as much as a house in many countries, many people pay full price without thinking twice.
However, with some skill and a clear plan, you can often land additional scholarship money from schools that have admitted you.
You will usually receive notice of any scholarships you have been awarded shortly after receiving your notification of admission. At this point, the best course of action to improve your scholarship amount is to wait to hear if you are awarded scholarships from any other universities (as this may be used as leverage), get in touch with the school’s financial aid department to start the conversation, and begin drafting a polite letter that strategically demonstrates why you believe you should be reconsidered for a scholarship.
Each year, our clients are able to use this technique to negotiate their way into full- or near-full-tuition scholarships, so make sure you at least give negotiation a try!
Financing your degree
Finally, beyond securing the necessary funds to pay your deposit and working to ensure you’ve maximized your scholarship offerings, you should begin to take steps to secure the funding you need to fully finance your degree.
If you’re planning to pay out of pocket, you’ll want to research when tuition payments are due and, if necessary, understand how you’re going to transfer money from your country of origin to your country of study. Given international regulations and ever-changing exchange rates, this can often be more complex than you might imagine.
If you’re planning to finance any part of your degree, you should begin researching your options and obtaining the necessary quotes.
If you have a co-signer willing to assume legal responsibility for your loan who is a citizen of the country in which you plan to study, you might be able to access loan options directly through the school.
The background check
One of the parts of the application process our clients find the most stressful is the post-admission background check. They immediately imagine CIA agents sifting through piles of confidential documents, looking for a reason to pull their offer of admission.
The reality is that MBA programs simply need to make sure that everything stated in your application is true and verifiable.
How does the process work?
Most MBA programs hire an outside company, such as ReVera, to conduct the background check process.
During the check, the company starts digging through the “paper trail” related to your profile. This includes verifying your employment history, ensuring your letters of recommendation were genuinely written by your recommender, confirming your degree and school history, and, in some cases, checking to see if you really participated in the extracurricular activities you listed in your application.
Perhaps the most important of the aforementioned checks is the one into your employment history.
If you work in a Fortune 500 with a robust HR department, as long as you were honest on your application, you probably have nothing to worry about. These types of companies diligently keep track of all employee information, so confirming your salary as an intern and the date you were promoted to analyst, for example, is an easy task.
However, if you work in a company that doesn’t have an HR department or you are self-employed, make sure you have the paper trail you’ll need to be able to prove the information given in your application is accurate.
For international applicants required to submit salary information in dollars, you need to be able to demonstrate your salary in local currency for each of your positions and justify the conversion rate you used when translating your salary into dollars. However, in Brazil, for example, currency exchange rates vary widely, meaning the calculations we perform quickly become inaccurate. In this case, however, we can document the exchange rate on the day of the application, using this to justify the salary we stated in dollars.
Additionally, the background check can also extend to your extra-curricular activities. For international applicants, however, this can be somewhat complicated, as many organizations simply do not keep detailed records of their participants.
In these cases, try to establish some sort of proof you were involved or obtain a reference from the organization who would be willing to confirm your involvement. If you’re not able to find proof, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t include the involvement in your application, just be aware you may have trouble in the future.
Finally, make sure that everything you’ve stated in your application is true and verifiable. The burden of proof, after all, lies squarely on your shoulders. So, if you have a non-traditional or “complicated” paper trail, you might want to proactively start gathering evidence to support your story in order to ensure you have the necessary information when needed.
Additional arrangements
In addition to the preparations we’ve mentioned above, there are a few “less obvious” steps you need to take to get ready for your MBA.
Finding housing
Another significant challenge you’ll face is securing housing in your new city.
Some schools, like Harvard Business School, offer on-campus housing that is readily available to students. In fact, the majority of HBS students live in campus housing!
At many other schools, however, students are on their own when it comes to finding and renting an apartment. This can provide additional challenges, as our former clients, Lucas and Patricia, told us. After arriving in Singapore, they were surprised to find limited housing available citywide, especially near campus.
However, given the time of year (December) and the bureaucratic complexity associated with renting an apartment outright, their search quickly turned into desperation. Luckily, by accessing INSEAD student forums, they found a sublet near campus.
Given the difficulty and often higher-than-expected costs of renting a house or apartment during your MBA, we suggest you begin reaching out to current students and alumni to start your housing hunt as soon as you receive the news you’ve been admitted. Though you may not be able to finalize your contract until you arrive, you’ll at least have a clear game plan and an understanding of how local regulations work.
Starting the visa process
If you’re an international student, you will also need to start the visa application process to ensure you have the necessary permission to enter and remain in your country of study.
If you plan to study in the US, you will need to apply for an F1 visa if you do not already have a different visa that allows you to study and stay in the country.
In the UK, on the other hand, there are multiple different tiers of visas, so you must ensure which is the most appropriate for you given your study plans.
Regardless of which type of visa you need, the universities will provide detailed instructions on applying for your visa. Make sure you read all emails the university sends and follow all instructions given fully and quickly. If you ever have questions on specific elements of the visa application, it’s best to get in touch directly with the university.
Your next chapter begins now
Moving forward is only possible when we step outside of our comfort zone and pursue something greater. If you’ve just been admitted to an MBA program, you’re on this path.
As you go through this transition of leaving your job and preparing for your MBA experience, be sure to take time and reflect upon the dedication, hard work, and perseverance that brought you here. After all, these are the traits and strengths that helped you achieve success—and will see you through your MBA education.
If you want to plan how you’ll get the most from your MBA experience, need help negotiating a better scholarship, or are interested in career coaching after graduation, our hourly services offer you customized help even after you’ve been accepted to a top MBA program. Find out more about our 5- and 10-hour packages here.
Real MBA Essays That Got People In
School-specific sample essays that got our clients accepted
